We see quite a few people with back pain in our Nashville practice, and Sweeney Chiropractic has been able to help many of them get relief with chiropractic. At the same time, recovering from back problems doesn't necessarily mean having to make a choice between chiropractic care and medical care, as many people use both types of care with great results.
In a report published by the medical journal Spine experts1 looked at a group of active-duty military personnel between the ages of 18 and 35 who were suffering from both acute pain and limited function due to back symptoms. Some of the test subjects engaged in treatment via standard medical therapy, while the remainder were given chiropractic care together with regular medical care, as the authors wanted to see which group fared better.
The authors determined that the patients who received standard medical care in combination with chiropractic scored "significantly better" than the patients who received medical care alone; 73% reported positive benefits compared to just 17 percent of the medical treatment only group who reported the same amount of improvement. This was true regarding both pain and level of function at two and four weeks.
Therefore, integrating these two forms of care can greatly benefit you--the patient--offering advantages when compared to medical care alone. However, while chiropractic care and medicine can work alongside each other, chiropractic offers some unique advantages over medical therapy.
Although it might seem as if each approach plays a 50-50 role, there is one major benefit that chiropractic has over medical care and that is in patient satisfaction. In fact, a piece of research done at UCLA2 that was printed in the American Journal of Public Health found that, on average, chiropractic patients are generally more satisfied with their recovery than people undergoing medical care.
According to the experts, the main aspects that patients favored over medical care were "self-care advice and explanation of treatment." This isn't surprising, as chiropractors tend to spend much more time advising their patients as to how they can better their health on their own, as well as explaining more thoroughly what to expect from chiropractic.
Without a doubt, the strategies associated with chiropractic are very different than those provided with medical therapy, but a large amount of the distinction is the fact that chiropractic is a natural approach to health and well-being. Instead of focusing on just relieving the symptoms, chiropractic care means finding the primary cause of your pain, which often results in greater improvement as you are tackling the problem at its source.
In addition, while medication is sometimes helpful for treating certain conditions, many health issues respond well to a natural approach such as chiropractic care. This means fewer negative side effects from medications and lasting recovery.
You don't have to suffer from back pain or other health issues. Give our Nashville clinic a call today at (615) 331-7040. We'll do everything we can to help you get and remain free from back pain.
References
Dr. Jim Sweeney & Dr. Jon Sweeney, your Nashville Chiropractors and Palmer College of Chiropractic West graduates, provide quality chiropractic care to patients in Nashville, TN. If you suffer from back pain, neck pain, headache, sciatica or have been in an auto collision, Sweeney Chiropractic can get you back on the road to health.
